North Mason Resources to add support for LGBTQ youth

North Mason High School teens joined North Mason Resources Board President Rebecca Bonneville, bottom row, far left, and Executive Director Theresa Scott, top row, second from right, packed and delivered 135 boxes of Thanksgiving meals for North Mason families on Nov. 22, including 125 baskets from the Gig Harbor Basket Brigade. North Mason Resources plans to add services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, as well as for LGBTQ youth, next year.(Photo: Arla Shephard Bull / Mason County Life)

North Mason Resources is entering this holiday season with much to be grateful for and is looking forward to offering more programs for people in need in the new year.

The Belfair nonprofit already offers support for people seeking housing, jobs, veterans’ assistance, mental health and addiction counseling and financial education. Next year it plans to offer space for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault and for LGBTQ youth.

North Mason Resources plans to partner with Turning Pointe Survivor Advocacy Center in Shelton to bring support groups and case management to Belfair. It has applied for a grant to start adult literacy classes and some type of support for LGBTQ youth in Belfair.

Executive Director Theresa Scott has met gay couples and individuals who have expressed concern over the lack of resources for their community in Belfair, both in her job at North Mason Resources and in her former position as a homeless advocate at North Mason School District.

“I want to increase the support for young adults in general and within that community,” Scott said. “I had a gay woman come in and share the discrimination she faced in Kitsap trying to find housing with her partner and two kids. I’ve talked to students who’ve shared real challenges.”

While the grant to offer those services and the adult literacy classes is still pending, Scott has found success in grant writing for the nonprofit over the past year.

In October, Scott won $2,000 from a competition with the Puget Sound Grantwriter’s Association, and North Mason Resources also earned $5,000 from the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound.

Scott estimates that grants now cover about 75 percent of the annual budget for North Mason Resources, with fundraising accounting for another 25 percent. Less than half a percent comes from county funding, Scott said.

The county cut funding to the nonprofit this year to about $46,000, which covers two positions: a case manager for homeless services and a position that facilitates the coordinated entry program for Mason County, wherein anyone seeking services countywide is logged into the same system.

The county also paid office rent for a full-time veterans’ assistance representative to work out of North Mason Resources, but it announced that as of Nov. 30, it could no longer cover the cost.

“This is concerning because I’m afraid we will lose a lot of veterans,” Scott said. “We already have difficulty getting them to come here. I have many who say they didn’t know they could access these services. If they have to go to Shelton, I’m afraid we’ll lose even more.”

Scott said the nonprofit will do whatever is necessary to keep veterans assistance in the building.

In addition to offering help for veterans seeking benefits and the homeless in need of resources, North Mason Resources partners with a variety of agencies.

WorkSource houses several computers and other resources for job seekers, Northwest Children’s Outreach picks up and drops off clothing for children, and the Department of Social and Health Services drops off items for participants in the Housing and Essential Needs program monthly.

The Thurston-Mason Behavioral Health Organization, Behavioral Health Resources and Dr. Ruth Curah also offer counseling on site for individuals and families, as well as for seeking treatment for mental health and substance abuse.

While summer saw a slowdown in the number of people entering North Mason Resources’ doors, through September and October, the numbers picked up steadily, Scott said.

“We’ve seen a huge spike,” she said. “We had kind of a slowdown in the last few months, but then we’ve had a huge increase. We signed up 460 people for services in 2016 and I’m sure we’ll have more than 500 this year.”
The nonprofit donated 500 cans of green beans and 250 boxes of stuffing to the Gig Harbor Basket Brigade for Thanksgiving meals in the region and ended up bringing back 125 Thanksgiving baskets for families in North Mason.

The nonprofit will be collecting toys for Toys for Tots and is participating through Dec. 13 in the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound’s Give Local campaign.

Out of more than 40 nonprofits featured in the Give Local campaign, four are from North Mason, including North Mason Resources, the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group, Faith in Action and the Boys & Girls Club of South Puget Sound.

For more information, visit North Mason Resources at 140 Highway 300 in Belfair or at nmresources.org. To donate to the Give Local campaign, which will be eligible for a match from the Dawkins Charitable Trust, visit www.thecommunityfoundation.com.